Bears and Snakes, Oh My!

Featuring picnic and camping areas, lakes and woodland trails, Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming draws hundreds of thousands of tourists every year. It also is home to two separate bear species. On July 28, Kevin Kammer was killed in a bear attack that wounded two others at the Soda Butte Campground in Yellowstone. Another male at the same campsite was bitten on the calf, while a female suffered severe scratches and bites to her arms. Yellowstone officials have called this "the most brazen attack in 20 years." And, while the bear has been found and detained, it brings wildlife attacks to the fore once again.

In the area of Las Vegas, Nevada, we have no huge animals ready to trash a campsite and drag humans out of their tents. Mountain Lions are rarely seen, and they never attack a camp. What we do have, however, are smaller reptiles with enough poison to down a full-grown man. Rattlesnakes have killed one-to-three people yearly in the past 10 years. Nevada has three separate kinds of rattlesnakes. While it may seem far less intimidating than Yellowstone's bears, there was not a single fatality from bear attacks anywhere in America last year .

I was bitten by a rattlesnake in July of 2008, hiking in Red Rock Canyon. I wasn't far from the start of a hiking trail when I felt a sharp pain just above my ankle. It seems odd now that I initially thought I'd walked into a cactus or brushed against a broken shard of glass.

I quickly looked down and saw a snake hastily slithering away. It was small, and was gone before I got a very good look at it. Lifting up my pants, I discovered two small, bleeding holes approximately three inches above my ankle. Having lived in Nevada practically all my life I knew any snake that bites is a threat. I immediately went to the visitor's center, where they contacted park rangers trained in snake-bite treatment. I learned that it was most likely a young rattlesnake that bit me, as I couldn't hear its rattle. Due to its young age, it discharged a disproportionate amount of venom, which leads to the common misconception that smaller snakes are more toxic. They also told me that it's a good thing I came back promptly, as, if it had been given time to spread through my bloodstream, it may very well have killed me.

So, I was much more fortunate than the campers at Soda Butte. It seems strange that the animal that attacked me kills more people yearly than any bear species. Kevin Kammer no doubt had no chance during his attack, whereas I had managed to seek treatment, given a snake's lack of aggression compared to a bear. Bear attacks seem to be something to fear much more, given the size and ferocity of the creatures. While snakes, though feared, are rarely reported of in the news, despite their killing potential. Truly the lesson to be learned from these two (very different) animal attacks is that the size and ferocity doesn't matter with animals; always take precautions.

Sources:

http://jasperwildlife.com/Fatal-Bear-Attacks-in-North-America-Jasper-Wildlife.html

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/06/grizzly-bear-kills-hiker-near-yellowstone.html